49 Elisabeth Elliot Quotes

"Spiritual strongholds begin with a thought. One thought becomes a consideration. A consideration develops into an attitude, which leads then to action. Action repeated becomes a habit, and a habit establishes a "power base for the enemy," that is, a stronghold."

- Elisabeth Elliot

Topics: Attitude, Habits

"The Word of God I think of as a straight edge, which shows up our own crookedness. We can't really tell how crooked our thinking is until we line it up with the straight edge of Scripture."

- Elisabeth Elliot

Topics: Scripture

"Discipline, for the Christian, begins with the body. We have only one. It is this body that is the primary material given to us for sacrifice. We cannot give our hearts to God and keep our bodies for ourselves."

- Elisabeth Elliot

Topics: Discipline

"We must quit bending the Word to suit our situation. It is we who must be bent to that Word, our necks that must bow under the yoke."

- Elisabeth Elliot

Topics: Humility

"We want to avoid suffering, death, sin, ashes. But we live in a world crushed and broken and torn, a world God Himself visited to redeem. We receive his poured-out life, and being allowed the high privilege of suffering with Him, may then pour ourselves out for others."

- Elisabeth Elliot

Topics: Suffering, Brokenness, Redemption

"To the world at large this was a sad waste of five young lives. But God has His plan and purpose in all things... The prayers of the widows themselves are for the Aucas. We look forward to the day when these savages will join us in Christian praise. Plans were promptly formulated for continuing the work of the martyrs."

- Elisabeth Elliot

Topics: Missions

"There are those who insist that it is a very bad thing to question God. To them, "why?" is a rude question. That depends, I believe, on whether it is an honest search, in faith, for His meaning, or whether it is the challenge of unbelief and rebellion."

- Elisabeth Elliot

Topics: Rebellion, Unbelief

"Our vision is so limited we can hardly imagine a love that does not show itself in protection from suffering.... The love of God did not protect His own Son.... He will not necessarily protect us - not from anything it takes to make us like His Son. A lot of hammering and chiseling and purifying by fire will have to go into the process."

- Elisabeth Elliot

Topics: Suffering, Vision

"The one who loves knows better than anyone else how to conduct himself, how to serve the one he loves. Love prescribes an answer in a given situation as no mere rule can do."

- Elisabeth Elliot

Topics: Love

"When ours are interrupted, his are not. His plans are proceeding exactly as scheduled, moving us always (including those minutes or hours or years which seem most useless or wasted or unendurable) "toward the goal of true maturity" (Rom 12:2 JBP)."

- Elisabeth Elliot

Topics: God, Life, Goals

"One way to begin to see how vastly indulgent we usually are is to fast. It is a long day that is not broken by the usual three meals. One finds out what an astonishing amount of time is spent in the planning, purchasing, preparing, eating, and cleaning up of meals."

- Elisabeth Elliot

Topics: Fasting

"Until the will and the affections are brought under the authority of Christ, we have not begun to understand, let alone to accept, His lordship."

- Elisabeth Elliot

Topics: Humility, Authority

"God never witholds from His child that which His love and wisdom call good. God's refusals are always merciful- "severe mercies" at times but mercies all the same. God never denies us our hearts desire except to give us something better."

- Elisabeth Elliot

Topics: Mercy

"The clothes we wear are what people see. Only God can look on the heart. The outward signs are important. They reveal something of what is inside. If charity is there, it will become visible outwardly, but if you have no charitable feelings, you can still obey the command. Put it on as simply and consciously as you put on a coat. You choose it; you pick it up; you put it on. This is what you want to wear."

- Elisabeth Elliot

Topics: Charity, Feelings

"If we do anything to further the kingdom of God, we may expect to find what Christ found on that road - abuse, indifference, injustice, misunderstanding, trouble of some kind. Take it. Why not? To that you were called. In Latin America someone who feels sorry for himself is said to look like a donkey in a downpour. If we think of the glorious fact that we are on the same path with Jesus, we might see a rainbow."